The coach after the loss to Cagliari: “We needed to do more on the technical side, then the red card changed the game”

A second straight loss and a sudden, obvious step backward. Roma fell to Cagliari and now risks slipping out of the Champions League zone after having another chance to reclaim the top spot in the standings. A tense, uneventful match. Gasperini, after the game, appeared concerned: “We needed to do more technically, even though Cagliari, like other teams fighting for survival, is giving it their all. We made glaring mistakes. Even defensively, like on the goal or the red card. Were we sitting deeper than usual? Cagliari was playing long balls; it was natural.”

The red card—  Celik’s red card obviously weighed heavily on the match. “We weren’t able to take control technically; we were managing it at the start of the second half, but then the sending-off happened,” admits Gasperini. “With ten men, the match became difficult, even though for a while we managed to avoid conceding. It was hard to build anything under those conditions; it became more of a battle than a soccer match. There are games that take this turn, and we made mistakes. I don’t think we lacked effort.” Finally, on the refereeing decisions: “Today’s analysis is correct, unlike what happened last Sunday against Napoli.”